A New Year's Beginning
by mary-d1
Summary: One Chapter fic...sorry guys...lol! On New Years Eve, Hermione swears for the first time, Ron is abused by his wife, and at the stroke of midnight they both begin the next chapter in their lives


Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related names and places are the legal property of J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, and AOL Time Warner, and have been used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~  
  
Ron had never heard Hermione swear so much. Actually in the fifteen years he had known her, he had never heard a bad word cross her lips. Even after five years of being married, he still hadn't heard her say anything worse than "goodness". She was certainly making up for lost time tonight.  
  
Over the past ten hours, Ron had been keeping a mental note of how many times she had sworn at him, or the healers, or actually any unfortunate soul that had crossed her path. The last hour had been truly eventful. Hermione used words that Ron knew would make even Fred and George blush. She was up to 135 so far.  
  
"Damn you, Ronald Weasley!" Make that 136.  
  
Ron tired hard not to smile at her; he'd made that mistake once already tonight. He'd gotten a cup of ice to the head for his enjoyment. His hand was hurting something horrible. He was definitely glad he had offered his left hand to her. If she had his right, he wouldn't be able to hold a quill or his wand for at least a month. He wished he had that cup of ice back...  
  
"...8...9...and 10. Alright Hermione, relax."  
  
Hermione fell back against the pillow and relaxed her grip on his hand. Reaching down, he brushed a stray chestnut curl off her forehead. Her face was blood red, and she was breathing fast and hard.  
  
"Okay Hermione, you're almost there. I think one more push should do it."  
  
Ron saw the danger signs, but didn't have time to react. Hermione's nostrils had flared and she'd gone a brighter shade of red. She struggled into the closest thing to an upright position as she could and grabbed hold of the Healer's robes.  
  
"You listen to me Padma Patil! I've been doing this for nearly an hour! This child is not coming out and there's nothing I can do about it! Now, I'm going to lie back and have a rest! I'm not pushing anymore! I can't do it! You want it out? THEN YOU GO IN AND GET IT OUT! I'M THROUGH!" Hermione was violently shaking Padma as she screamed.  
  
She continued shaking, apparently to make sure her point was clearly made, until pain caused her hand to loosen its grip. Falling back, she clutched the sheet and began to sob.  
  
Ron sighed. His mother had warned him about this. It didn't help that Hermione was already angry because Padma was here. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~  
  
Hermione hadn't been due for another two weeks and Healer Coldwater had assured her that there was no reason for her to deliver early. So much for a healer's word.  
  
They'd been having lunch at home. Hermione looked suddenly pale and said quietly, "Ron, it's time to go."  
  
Looking at his watch he replied, "No, we're meeting mum at 2 o'clock. It's only a little before one."  
  
She kicked him under the table. "No, idiot! It's time to go to the hospital!"  
  
The day had been a disaster from that point on. When they arrived at St. Mungo's they were told that Healer Coldwater had been called out of London on urgent business.  
  
"So, who's the attending healer?" Hermione had snapped.  
  
Ron actually felt sorry for the poor little woman behind the desk. Not nearly as sorry as he was about to feel for himself, though.  
  
"Well, let's see." The witch scanned down a sheaf of parchment. "Oh yes, here we are. Healer Padma Patil."  
  
Hermione turned narrow eyes on Ron. "I will not have your ex-girlfriend delivering my child!"  
  
"Hermione, Padma was never my girlfriend!"  
  
"You went to the Yule Ball together! And you took her to Hogsmeade once!"  
  
"Well I would hardly call that a relationship!"  
  
Finally Ron had convinced her to stay. She had actually contemplated going to a muggle hospital for a few moments. The witch behind the desk hadn't helped matters.  
  
"Healer Patil is quite good, Healer Weasley. She's the best on the maternity floor. Besides it's always nice to have someone you know and trust delivering your child."  
  
It was a lucky chance that Hermione had nothing heavy within her reach. That witch would probably still be out cold. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~  
  
Taking a cool wet cloth, he held it against her face. "Come on, Hermione. You have to do this." He made sure he had a clear escape route in case she came after him.  
  
Tears streaming, Hermione looked up at him. "I can't anymore, Ron! I'm so tired and it hurts so much! I just can't do it anymore!" Her last words were barely audible.  
  
Ron put his face close to hers. "Now you listen to me Hermione Elizabeth Weasley! I never want to hear you say 'I can't' ever again, do you understand? There's nothing you can't do. You are the strongest and bravest person I know." Hermione looked like she was going to argue for a moment, but Ron silenced her. "Yes, you! Who saved our necks from Devil's Snare? Who brewed an illegal potion right in the middle of a bathroom? Who went back in time to save an innocent man's life? Who took on Deatheaters at the Ministry? Who stood face to face with Voldemort and helped defeat him?" He stopped and gave her hand a squeeze. "Who was the only woman brave enough to marry me? You, Hermione. You were the one who always pushed Harry and me. We wouldn't have gotten through any of that without you! You're brilliant, courageous, beautiful, and everything I always wanted. You've done everything you've ever set your mind to. Don't stop now, Hermione. You can do this; I know you can."  
  
Hermione gave a small smile and a nod. Trying to sit up, she winced in pain.  
  
"I know it hurts. If I could trade places with you right now, I would." He held a hand out to her. "Take my hand; let's do this together."  
  
Padma stood more than an arm's length from Hermione and said, "Are you guys ready?"  
  
Ron and Hermione looked at each other then nodded.  
  
"Alright, on three then. 1...2...3..."  
  
Ron never really remembered what happened after three. His mind split into many different directions. Part of his thoughts went back to his first time on the Hogwarts Express. He remembered the bossy, bushy-haired girl barging into his and Harry's compartment. He had decided that he didn't like her very much.  
  
He thought back to the end of their seventh year. Hermione lay silent, in a bed not far from here. He begged her to open her eyes. He promised all number of things if she would just come back to him.  
  
Someone counting filtered through his thoughts, along with Padma's voice.  
  
"10...9...8..."  
  
"Alright just a bit more!"  
  
"...7...6...5..."  
  
"I see it!"  
  
"...4...3...2..."  
  
"Here it comes!"  
  
"...1...Happy New Year!"  
  
A gasp and then a loud wailing brought Ron around.  
  
Padma smiled at them. "Congratulations guys, you've got a beautiful daughter." She looked at the clock and smiled wider. "And unless I'm mistaken, you've also got the first baby of the New Year."  
  
Ron looked own at Hermione, who was crying more than ever. She gave him a very watery smile. "A girl...a baby girl..."  
  
Ron was still stunned. He'd forgotten that it was nearly New Year's. And he would start the New Year with a beautiful daughter. He leaned down to his wife. "Happy New Year, Hermione. I love you."  
  
"Happy New Year, Ron. I love you, too."  
  
Both leaned in and pressed their lips together. The kiss wasn't grand, or even dramatic. It was a simple kiss between two people who had battled death to be together. A simple kiss between two people who had created life together. A simple kiss that was anything but.... 


End file.
